Category: News

Editor’s note: This story was originally published after the 2012 Festival in the wake of the Occupy Wall Street Movement and the Arab Spring. We’re republishing it this week as we witness the power of protests and activism to combat the systemic racism that has long plagued our country and its criminal justice system. There is still much work to be done.

With every installment of the Sundance Film Festival comes the same challenge of capturing the scope of such a huge event. There’s so many things happening at any one time, and being able to document it as well share all these unique experiences is a tall order. Thankfully, this year it’s gotten a lot easier with the help of four things: a hashtag, an iPhone, an app, and you.

Park City, UT – Sundance Institute announced today the 23 members of the six juries awarding prizes at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, as well as the host of the Awards Ceremony on January 28. The Festival takes place January 19 through 29 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.
Actress and writer Parker Posey will serve as the host of the 2012 Sundance Film Festival Awards Ceremony, set to take place January 28 at 7:00 p.

On January 26, Sundance Film Festival USA dispatches nine filmmakers from Park City to nine cities across the country to screen and discuss their direct-from-Festival films with audiences. In the coming weeks, we’ll introduce you to this year’s hosts by featuring them in our venue profile series.
Music Box Theatre Chicago, IL  
Patrons of the Music Box Theatre in Chicago frequently used to ask me about my Festival experience each year: What was it like? Did I meet any interesting filmmakers?  What will be the next Sundance film to make it big?  Was there a little gem that might get overlooked by the industry and never be seen again? During these conversations, it was very apparent that they would have loved nothing more than to experience firsthand the Festival they had heard so much about.

Documentary filmmaker Andrew Rossi is drawn to worlds that at first seem impenetrable. In his previous film, the riveting Page One: Inside the New York Times (which premiered at Sundance in 2011), Rossi obtained a “fly-on the-wall” look at the newspaper industry in a state of transition and turmoil. Now, with his latest documentary Ivory Tower, Rossi departs The Grey Lady’s sanctified headquarters for the hallowed halls of Harvard to find an explanation for the staggering cost faced by Americans in pursuit of higher education.

On Monday, January 20, with #FreeFail, the Sundance Film Festival will dedicate a day to exploring a vital aspect of the creative process: Failure. To kick off the festivities, filmmaker Jennie Livingston (Paris is Burning) reflects on the challenges she has faced as the self-proclaimed World’s Slowest Filmmaker.
While investigating links for a website for the film I’m making, Earth Camp One, I came across a blog that described me as someone who’d made an important film and then failed to follow it up with a career.

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A bevy of 2011 Sundance Film Festival films and artists were nominated last month for the Film Independent Spirit Awards, held annually to honor the premier talent in independent film. Online voting opens January 27, and winners will be announced at a February 25 awards ceremony broadcast on IFC (10 p.m.

Park City, UT – Sundance Institute announced today the selection of four additional films for the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. The Festival will be January 19 through 29 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah. The complete list of films is available at www.

As we welcome in the new year we are excited to begin our journey with Film Forward. Last year’s program was our first, and was an exciting one filled with exploration, dialogue and learning. Our experiences have reinforced the very reason that we believe in this program: We saw this in China as students told us they felt empowered after seeing Freedom Riders, despite the repression of their government.

MCLEAN, Va., (December 16, 2011) – Hilton Worldwide announced today new support for Sundance Institute, a global, nonprofit organization dedicated to the discovery and development of independent artists and audiences in film and theater. Hilton HHonors, the loyalty program for Hilton Worldwide’s 10 distinct brands, and Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, a part of the Hilton Worldwide luxury portfolio, have been named the official hotel sponsors of the Sundance Film Festival through 2014.

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute has selected 12 projects for its annual January Screenwriters Lab, an immersive, five-day (January 13-18) writers’ workshop at the Sundance Resort in Utah. Participating independent screenwriters – drawn from around the world, including the United States, China, South Africa, and Europe – will have the opportunity to work intensely on their feature film scripts with the support of established writers in an environment that encourages innovation and creative risk-taking.
Michelle Satter, Director of the Sundance Institute Feature Film Program, said, “We are very excited to support these filmmakers who are giving voice to a world in transition with a diverse range of stories, genres and contemporary themes.